Fehendhoo and Goidhoo island of Baa atoll will be linked via a causeway.
The project was included in the proposed budget for 2022 as a Goidhoo project. MVR 200,000 was allocated from the budget for pre-tendering work.
When asked regarding the project, Goidhoo Council President Mohamed Siyan said neither the island's residents nor the council requested the government to link the two islands at any point. The council was not aware that the government had allocated any funds for the project in next year's budget, Siyan said.
'If the government wishes to carry out such a project, I believe it should be discussed with the island's people. The budget for the project was allocated without any discussion with the council. If Goidhoo and Fehendhoo are linked via a causeway, it will cause challenges to our fishermen in finding bait, as it would increase the amount of time, money, and effort. These are things that must be considered when deciding on such a project,' Siyan said.
Siyan further said if any residents of Fehendhoo wished to relocate to Goidhoo, they are always welcome to do so. He believes the government wishes to link the two islands as the Fehendhoo school is closed and due to previous difficulties in getting on and off the island.
'Fehendhoo is now preparing to reopen their school; they now have a proper harbor. The difficulties faced by the people of Fehendhoo have been eased,' said Siyan.
Speaking to AVAS, the President of Fehendhoo Council, Jaadullah Ali said before the issues were resolved, some island residents requested President Ibrahim Mohamed Solih to link the two islands via a causeway when he visited the island during the 2018 presidential campaign. However, since the difficulties faced by the island's people have been addressed, the residents of the island may have changed their opinion on linking the two islands, said Jaadullah.
'If a causeway is to link the two islands, we need to seek the people's opinion on the matter. The current council did not request budget allocations to link the islands, and we were not aware that funds had been allocated until you asked us regarding this,' he said.
Jaadullah said although linking the islands would bring some benefit, such a project could change the environment surrounding the two islands. Despite being one of the islands with the lowest populations, the people of Fehendhoo have no desire to relocate to another island, said Jaadullah.
'We now view our population being small as an advantage to developing our island. Local tourism is thriving in Fehendhoo today, and the people wish for wealth and prosperity. Our selling point in local tourism is being a quiet, beautiful island with few people. The residents of the island believe development can be achieved through earning,' Jaadullah said.
